Forever Love
by strapped to a comet
Summary: Over her lifetime, Elizabeth Turner had weathered many things. Their eighth day together, however, was the one that finally took her breath away. WillElizabeth. Post ATW.


Author's Note: First off, major spoilers of ATW! You have been warned ; )

So the only two scenes worth watching in World's End (other than the ones where Geoffrey Rush steals his scenes) are Will and Elizabeth's impromptu ceremony, and the scene after the credits. Blame the sap in me for loving those, I suppose.

This little coda is a tribute to those two, with lots of fluff and a romantic's ending. Every line break is a break in time. Enjoy & please review!

Dedicated to Jenny, because I promised her I would write it!

* * *

Forever Love

_My dear girl, when should you learn–  
the pirate who stole your breath  
Is the man to love for a year;  
And the boy who stole your heart  
The one to love for a lifetime?_

–

Every time that beach came into view, he knew she could hear his heart skip a beat in anticipation.

And every time, he swore she was more beautiful than before.

She aged, of course, but with the dignity and grace befit the pirate king of the seas. He would age with her, if only for that day, so for the few brief moments of their lives they could steal away, they were kindred spirits in body and soul.

He knew he wouldn't have made it through the hard days without his father at his side. The captain of the Dutchman sometimes regretted that he seemed to be doing to his own son what his father had done to him – and then his father would give his skull a hard knock in the head and make him come to his senses. Will was there for his son, in the bedtime stories his beloved whispered to their boy every night, and in the smiles his young one shared, once every ten years, when his father traveled the seas to come see him.

–

"He's found a girl, you know."

William Turner, the eldest, looked down in the face of his wife, and smiled, almost goofily with the pride and happiness he felt swell in his chest.

"Has he, now?" Will asked with amusement.

Elizabeth wrapped her arms tighter around her husband, never wanting to let go, though she knew she would have to come the next dawn.

"Her name is Katherine," Elizabeth elaborated, turning her head to lay a kiss on Will's shoulder. "He plans to introduce you at dinner this evening."

"Is he in love?" Will asked, his voice just above a whisper.

Elizabeth rested a hand against Will's chest to push herself up into a sitting position, not minding the coarse sand that brushed up against her legs as she did so.

"Judging by the blush I receive from him every time her name comes up…" Elizabeth smiled warmly down at her husband. "Not to mention all the commissions he's taken on by her father to, no doubt, put himself in the man's good graces." Elizabeth paused for the memories to resurface, but by the look in Will's eyes, he had not forgotten. "He's a blacksmith now, Will. Just like his father," Elizabeth reiterated, smirking down at her husband.

"I assure you, Mrs. Turner, I had utterly pure intentions in working for your father," Will scolded lightly with a straight face.

"I never said I doubted _your_ intentions, Mr. Turner," Elizabeth replied softly leaning down to leave a trail of kisses along Will's jaw, and then finally his lips.

The latter kind of kiss, however, proved much harder to stop.

–

When Elizabeth looked out onto the setting sun, she turned to glance at her two companions, and smiled. Her son had grown into a man in the blink of an eye, and had learned to love, just as she had so many years ago. Elizabeth wondered how Will would react to the news of his coming grandchild when he reached the shore.

As always, she met him as the waters were being pulled into the sea by the undertow, one of many unstoppable forces in the oceans of the world.

Twenty years made no difference in their eyes, and they embraced and kissed each other like young lovers again. Theirs was the forever kind of love.

A brief cough, and then, "Father?"

Will paused in greeting his wife at the sound of his son, and turned to face the boy who had turned into a man in his ten-year absence. William, the youngest, was the spitting image of his father, if not for the dark-haired beauty at his side.

Father and son embraced, and the captain of the Dutchman kissed his daughter-in-law on the cheek before glancing down at her rather round middle.

"Mum thought we should name him Jack," William said, grinning a goofy grin his father knew all too well.

"Or Jacqueline, if it's a girl," Katherine added, smiling, and holding her husband closer to her.

The captain exchanged one brief glance with his beloved, and agreed.

It was Jack Sparrow who gave them the chance to be where they are, despite all miscommunications. And the pair of lovers separated by the sea would honor him for it, wherever the flighty pirate was at that moment.

–

When they embraced on their fiftieth anniversary, tears mingled with kisses in their embrace. The years had taken a toll, and though that would never be vocal between them, it was in the long glances and soft wrinkles of the face of the woman he had loved for his entire life.

He loved her, he would always love; she knew that. But he also wanted to save her. He didn't know how to do that, and it scared him to think that he could lose her.

They spent their day in each other's arms. They spent it surrounded by their son, his kind wife, and their three grandchildren. They spent it together, surrounded by their family.

And come sunset, there were fewer tears mingled with their goodbyes.

–

William Turner Jr. looked down into the face of his wife, and then out onto the shore where his mother stood, and his heart ached.

"It's what she lives for now, just one more tomorrow, just one more day," William said softly.

Katherine looked up at her husband, and saw the tears reflected in his dark eyes. Resting a hand on his cheek, she forced him to look at her.

"She lives to see her son happy, and to see her grandchildren," Katherine said. "Don't deny her your father, Will."

"I just wish–" William cut off, his throat suddenly tight.

"I know, my love," Katherine whispered, wrapping her arms around her husband's waist to pull him close. "I know."

Yet, neither of them knew. Neither of them knew how to see the captain of the Dutchman and his beloved together for more than just one day every ten years.

–

Will knew something was wrong the moment he didn't see his wife waiting for him on the sandy shores.

Once ashore, he ran to his son, who waited for him, and demanded the answers that pulled at his heart.

William Jr. paused for a moment as the age settled into his father and watched, as the wrinkles appeared, his black brown hair slowly grey into white.

"She's sick, Pa, she's sick," William answered. "Katherine's been looking after her. She's been holding on–"

"How long? For how long?" The captain demanded, desperate.

"A year, nearly a year," William said. "You have to see her – now."

The captain of the Dutchman nearly sprinted to the house that lay in the cliffs, to the house that held his beloved. Katherine answered the door and led him to an upstairs bedroom, her face long and drawn. Will exchanged a brief glance with his daughter-in-law, a smile that spoke his thanks, and then entered the room.

His Elizabeth lay on the bed, blankets up to her chin, her face pale; he swore still that she was beautiful. She looked like an angel in his eyes; she _was_ his angel.

"Elizabeth," Will was breathless as he knelt at her side.

She opened her eyes, slowly, and an ancient smile filled with love and memories for the man before her. He looked as old as she did! – and wasn't he immortal?

"Will," she had trouble speaking, her lungs laboring with just the simple task of breathing.

"I – love you," Elizabeth whispered.

"You're not going to say goodbye," Will cut in, his voice hard as he took her hand in both of his and lay a kiss on her knuckles. "This isn't goodbye."

Elizabeth's eyes flooded with tears that she thought had long ago dried up. She had been holding on for him; she didn't want to leave without saying her goodbyes. She had pictured it differently, but that was the truth. She didn't want to leave without him; she was afraid.

"You can't–" She coughed, a shallow cough at first that broke into a violent fit. Will's heart broke with each shuddering breath she took. "I love you, William Turner."

Will shook his head, tears gathering at the corners of his eyes as well. This had to work! It _had_ to.

"Elizabeth," he traced her jaw line and cupped the side of her face. Starting stronger, he repeated, "Elizabeth. This isn't goodbye."

Whether it was the haze in her mind after so many years, or the sound of her voice, she didn't know. She turned her face into his hand and let her eyes flutter closed for a moment.

"Elizabeth, my love," Will said.

She turned him, and he was as handsome as the first time they'd made love.

"Do you fear death?"

–

Theirs was the forever kind of love, the kind that lasted for eternity.

They had waited for a lifetime to be together; they had made it.

When the sun set, William Turner Jr. watched with his wife as the pirate king and the captain of the Dutchman sailed into view.

* * *

Author's Note: I should mention this was my first venture into the fandom...how'd you like it? Please let me know in a review if you've got the time : ) 


End file.
